As long-time users know, Audiogon has not changed much from its original design in 1997. Over the past 14 years, you – the members of the audiophile community – have made Audiogon.com the place for serious audiophiles to buy and sell equipment, as well as to exchange ideas and offer support to likeminded enthusiasts through Audiogon’s Forums.
But like a comfortable pair of shoes, or a favorite old jacket, the leather eventually wears thin or the stitching starts to fail. We look around and realize the world has moved-on. Our favorite jacket is a bit dated and has become snug around the waist. And friends’ jackets are sporting some nifty new looks and features. We begin to think, “You know, this jacket has served me really well but maybe its time has come. I’m starting to wish . . . .”
In the same way, the web world has changed a lot in the last decade, and Audiogon has been looking a little dated. So, at the start of 2011 the Audiogon took a good, long look at the site – and at the functionality needed to serve the high-end audio community for another 14 years. As a result, starting this fall we’re going to begin making some changes. We want the new Audiogon to be as comfortable as your old familiar “jacket,” while introducing some features and functionality you’ve requested.
While we’re pretty sure you’ll like the changes we’re making to Audiogon, we want you, as a community, to know what’s coming. Over the next few months, until roughly the end of the year, we’ll be releasing newly-design sections of the website. To help you better understand these changes, here is a brief overview:
- We’ll be revamping classifieds, auctions, and “My Page” design and functionality.
- You’ll also find lots of new search features and filters such as price, category, and condition. In addition, we know many of you want a ZIP code radius filter and we’re working on it!
- The updated “My Page” will include a notification system for you to easily track all your items, whether buying or selling.
- Other options will allow you to be notified by email anytime something important happens — like getting outbid on an auction.
- You’ll also find easier communication between buyers and sellers, allowing you to quickly ask questions and get answers about items you want to buy.
- The improved image viewer will allow you to quickly look at all the great pictures users put up with their listings, and encourage posting even better photos.
- The listing process will be greatly simplified, especially the checkout process, which will have easy payment options so you can quickly list an item!
- We have not intention at this time to change our pricing.
As for more specifics, here are some Screen Shots to help you see the changes listed:
Creating a Listing
Searching with Filters (View of New Today)
View of a Classified Listing
MyPage
We will continue to update you as we roll out these changes. Watch for notices on Audiogon’s homepage, and you can even look for an occasional email when we need to tell you more than fits comfortably on the homepage! We’re excited about improving the user experience and hope you will be, too. Thank you for being part of the Audiogon community.
The Audiogon Team
Audiogon Blog 